New Buffalo City Dog Park

We just found out yesterday that the New Buffalo dog park is now open. Its only about 1.5 miles out from the center of town at 1420 E. Washington St. It's smaller than the Michigan City park, but plenty big enough. Its less than a 5 minute drive from our place, which is better than the 15-plus minutes down to Michigan City. Its very quiet and a nice grassy area for the dogs to run.

We took Maggie there last night and there were 4 friends there for her to play with. She sniffed around a lot and was comfortable enough to lay down, but she didn't do any running around. We'll try again tonight.

We went to the Michigan City park Thursday night where she did run around and play for a little while with two puppies. It was good for her to see how the puppies initiated play and since they were pups they were much more insistent that she play. The grown dogs often will show they want to play but if Maggie doesn't respond they leave her alone and go find another dog.

The frequent exposure to other dogs this past week really has semed to help her and each day builds off of the previous.

We also went to Bridges to eat outside with Mags. The food was so-so but it was a great spot to take her out with us and pretty quiet.

Also on Thurs, Maggie jumped out of the car on her own. That was a first and she repeated it yesterday, so we're hopeful that she finally has this down.

We've seen some great progress with her recently. The are sometimes small things, but they are signs that she's more trusting of us and more comfortable with new situations.

In the house she's figured out that if we're petting her that she can flop over on her side to get a belly rub. Previously we had to nudge her over to show her.

In a few new situations, such as the new park, the State Park beach, or just stopping to talk to neighbors in New Buffalo, she'll pretty quickly be comfortable enough to lie down and just chill. The old Maggie would have stood nervously with her nose dripping like a faucet. The nervous nose running happens much less frequently and for shorter durations. She still wil jump or finch easily at small noises, but we're seeing progress.

Last night some of our neighbors were at the firepit so we brought her out with us. She was great with about 15 people out and just lay there calmly all night - you wouldn't have even known she was there.

Grand Mere State Park

I'm doing my first posting from my phone, so we'll see how this goes...

We went to the Grand Mere State Park today as they have the only dog friendly beach anywhere nearby. Overall I'd say it was a bust. It couldn't be less convenient to get to - about .5 miles down a nature trail and what seems like another .5 miles over several large sand dunes.

It was all very secluded. Where some people might see nature and peace and quiet, Kat sees opportunity for someone to leave us for dead in the woods. But she sees nothing wrong with chasing someone's car in Cabrini Green when they hit her and fled... Go figure.

There was no one else on the beach, which normally would be nice but without other dogs there for Mags to play with she just laid on the beach and watched us get wet and try to call her to the water. It gets deeper a lot faster than Montrose so she probably wouldn't have enjoyed it much anyway. Add to that a dose of biting flies and we spent more time walking to and from the beach than at it.

We have some pics which we'll post when we're back home - I forgot the cable I need to get online here w/o going to a café or something.

We'll be hitting the park tonight and then try the restaurant, Bridges, which we've heard allows dogs on the patio. Hopefully the park works out better than the beach.

Vacation update - we just spent 2 hours with Maggie at the Montrose dog beach. The second we walked in her tail was wagging and she was bouncing around. We weren't there 5 minutes and she was running around. The waves were bigger than last time we went which startled her a bit, but she was really brave and worked her way back in. We stood about 20 ft out in the lake and she'd come part way out, go back, come out a little further. Eventually she made a game of jumping the waves as they came in and she worked her way out to us. Her tail was wagging nearly the whole time. Later, back on the sand, she got into her "I'm going to play even if I don't know how to play with other dogs, so I'll run around in circles by myself"-mode. She ran with us a few times up and down the beach too. She really seemed to have a blast and so did we.

Again, we think it's building off of being around George and the other dogs yesterday. Any time we have time around other dogs in relatively close succession she kind of picks up where she left off from the previous day. We're really looking forward to this week. On the agenda: there's a beach that allows dogs about 20 miles north of New Buffalo that we've never scoped out, so we'll probably check it out tomorrow; there's a restaurant in Michigan City that allows dogs on the patio that we've heard about from others at the dog park; we'll try to hit the dog park in the evenings so we can get her some daily exposure to dogs during the week, without the downside of running into some of the sketchy characters that go there during the work day.

I'm sure she'll sleep like a baby on the way up to Michigan, she was on sensory overload at the beach today, and that's the most running around she's done in months.

We just got home from Maggie's first "play-date" with George. George, as we mentioned on Saturday, was rescued from the same puppy mill as Maggie. George was awesome - he looks very much like Maggie (he was just groomed yesterday, so he's actually clean and trimmed - unlike our currently shaggy pooch). George was definitely not shy with the other dogs, and didn't care if a dog was 5 lbs or 70 lbs before engaging in play. If Maggie were eventually even 1/4 as playful as George, we'd be ecstatic.

They seemed to take to each other - Maggie certainly gave George much more sniff time than the other dogs. Later in the evening they both laid down together which Maggie doesn't do and they just seeemed comfortable with each other.

It was interesting to see how similar they were in some ways and very different in others. Apparently George also 'prances' on the leash, and he has very much of the same 'little person look'. Behavior-wise though, Maggie is a lot more timid and reserved.

George's parents, Carla and Justin, were really nice. They've had George going to doggie daycare twice a week and have had him in obedience training. They said he's come a long way since starting both of those activities. George even picked up a ball at the park today from another dog, which was a big step for him. We've held off on daycare up to this point thinking it would be a waste if Maggie is just going to sit in the corner and watch the other dogs, but now we're reconsidering. Carla & Justin said that's how George started off in day care, and now look at him, so we should give it a shot.

It was also nice to meet people who love to talk about their dog as much as we do, and convince us that we're not ridiculously obsessed or crazy (now, now, everyone keep your comments to yourselves). Hopefully we'll be getting back together soon!

Maggie didn't actually play at the park - as usual - she just supervised. But as I type this, she is completely passed out on her bed. Watching the other dogs play really tuckers her out.

Disappointing News . . .

Hi, everyone - it's Kat. I haven't posted in a while, so I feel bad bringing disappointing news to Maggie's blog, but it's something I have to share.

On July 1st the Fond Du Lac Reporter published a story with the results of the trial of J.C. Heiberg. Who's that? The owner / operator of Maggie's puppy mill. The verdict? Not guilty. I'm speechless - - and angry, upset, and sick to my stomach. Who does this to animals? Who sets them free to do it again?

I try hard not focus on Maggie's past and let anger enter my mind, but it's hard. I know the best thing I can do for Maggie is to focus on her future. Steve and I are committed to giving Maggie the very best and everything she needs - - and lots of love! We just want her to be happy, healthy, and to know that she's safe.

But the past keeps coming back to haunt us. As I type this Maggie is literally having a nightmare and is crying out. I used to rush to her side and wake her, but everything we have read says to let her sleep through them in the hopes of her not remembering. We can't help but wonder if she'll spend the rest of her life tortured by her past.

In order to keep our focus positive we've deliberately not Googled J.C. Heiberg in the past. Tonight "curiosity killed the Kat". If we had known her case was going to trial what would we have done? Attended? Maybe. Called the prosecutor and offered our assistance? Absolutely.

In the end it's Maggie - and the other animals - who were robbed of their justice. Steve and I are blessed to have Maggie, and we give thanks for her each day. She is the love of our lives.

It's been in the blog in the past, but it's worth mentioning again - - PLEASE DO NOT BUY A PET FROM A RETAIL STORE! Pet stores keep puppy mills in business.

Here's the story from the Fond du Lac Reporter on July 1st (and a link with more info) . . .

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A Fond du Lac County jury decided Tuesday afternoon that a 70-year-old woman was not guilty of mistreating up to 70 dogs, which authorities found housed in barns at her former Townline Road home in December 2007.

On a separate misdemeanor charge, J.C. M. Heiberg was found guilty Tuesday of not providing proper shelter for an animal.

Along with finding her not guilty of intentionally mistreating animals, the jury ruled she also was not guilty on two counts of obstructing an officer.

A sentencing hearing has been set for 10 a.m. July 21. Heiberg faces up to nine months in jail for the lone guilty verdict.

As a defense witness, Heiberg took the stand Tuesday morning, explaining to the court that she had a kennel license and was able to house the large number of animals she was keeping at her Townline Road home.

She said she was in the process of moving when authorities showed up on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2007, to search her residence.

Heiberg said she first started moving her horses and some of her dogs to her new Kenosha home the Friday before that, but made daily trips to the Townline Road home to care for the animals.

“Were the animals fed and watered every day between Friday and Tuesday,” defense attorney Brian Mares asked during direct examination.

“Yes,” Heiberg answered.

According to a criminal complaint, when authorities from the Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Department arrived at the home on Dec. 18, they found animal waste covering the floors of the barns where the animals were kept, with no food and little water for the dogs. Most of the water was frozen due to freezing temperatures at the time, according to the complaint.Two puppies were found dead, according to the complaint.

A Waupun Veterinary Clinic report concluded Heiberg was using her home to serve as an inhumane puppy mill in “an environment that kept the puppies alive but nothing else.”

Fond du Lac County Assistant District Attorney Jocelyn Jurva called detectives on the case to the stand during the first day of trial Monday. Testimony wrapped up Tuesday with the jury getting the case early in the afternoon.

After about three hours of deliberating, the jury returned with the verdict around 3:45 p.m.

This case is not the first time Heiberg has been charged with neglecting animals. Charges were sought after authorities searched her Townline Road home in December 2005 and found several animals without food or water. One dog was found dead in that instance.

Charges in that case were later dismissed on a prosecutor’s motion.

http://www.pet-abuse.com/cases/13052/WI/US/

My cousins, Emily and Julie were in town for a few days this week for a visit. Maggie was her usual excitable self: running around, jumping on them, and barking crazily - she's such a hassle! Ok, not really - she just chilled on her bed the entire time. Julie and my aunt Sue are big fans of the blog, so it's about one of them got honorable mention here (if Sue & Tom ever came to visit, they'd be here too). It was great to see both of them again and hopefully they'll make it back here soon.

Maggie did really great at the dog park last weekend. She got to go on back-to-back days which seemed to really help. She didn't play with the other dogs at all, but she definitely showed a keen interest in several of them and you could see the wheels turning in her head that she was thinking about jumping in. She just didn't get up the courage to go for it. On Sunday you could tell that we were picking up where we left off from Saturday, so that was good to see. Maggie immediately started wagging her tail as we entered the park, which surprised us and encourages us that even if she isn't running around that she enjoys her time there.

We're hoping a few more trips with some of the more friendly dogs at the park will get her going again. Also ,this Tuesday we're meeting another couple and their dog, George, at a dog park in Chicago. They found us through the blog, and rescued George from the same puppy mill. We're hopeful that they hit it off and it will be great to trade stories as they both seem to have similar behaviors.

We're also taking more time week through Labor Day in Michigan. We always see the best progress with Maggie when we have several days in a row to spend with her full time, so we're looking forward to 6 days of Maggie time. We'd hoped to get that level of time with her over our 4th of July vacation, but that started the day after the Great Escape occurred and Maggie (aka "Boots") spent the week nursing her paws.

Maggie continues to enjoy her time in the car and the basement. We wish we could bottle up whatever goes through her head in the car and bring it into the house. She's such a different dog in the car - so curious, interested, and happy. We've also started bringing her over to the couch in our family room to sit with us (by the couch, not on the couch). This also seems to help and she seems to want to be by us now - in the early days if we brought her over here she was stressed out and couldn't get back to her bed fast enough. Now she'll lie here for hours next to us.

One quick update - I was working from home today and was taking Maggie in to get her nails clipped over lunch.

I called Maggie down from the deck to "go to the car". She actually went - in the past we've always had to put her on the leash to guide her and get her to follow us to the garage.

As we walked in the garage, I immediately realized we might have a small issue. Before I called her down, I had gone to the car and opened the back door for her, and also put the garage door opener back on my visor. I accidentally left the driver door open while doing that, in addition to the back door. Consequently, Maggie got a little confused about which one was her door... this was the result.

We're off again to Michigan so we hope to have some fun stories from the dog park for Sunday night!

Ok, it' been a couple of weeks (again). So lots to write about...

Unbelievably, this past Saturday was exactly 6 months from the day we brought Maggie home. Going back through the blog photos and thinking about how this poor pup was afraid to walk anywhere and we were carrying her around, it's hard to believe how far she has come. Watching her on a walk outside now - assuming it's not too windy and there aren't any sprinklers running nearby - you'd think she was like any normal dog. She looks so happy prancing around the neighborhood - and seeing Maggie happy makes us happy!

We took Mags to New Buffalo again this weekend, and on Sunday went to the dog park. She was a lot more interested than the last time we went. She didn't do her "go crazy and play" thing, but she was definitely thinking about it. She made a few moves like she would but always backed off - hopefully this weekend she'll finally commit. But any day where Maggie gets to go for a car ride is a good day in her book. And due to the never-ending construction on I94 she got extra car time on the way back home.

We've been trying a few new things with Maggie that seem to be helping her.

We've been taking her with us whenever we'll be in another room for an extended period of time. That means after breakfast she comes back upstairs with us while we get ready for work.

We've been doing that for maybe three weeks. On Tuesday our schedules were a little off and Maggie was still contemplating eating her breakfast when Kat got in the shower and I headed out for work. Kat heard something, and sure enough, Maggie had worked up the courage to just come upstairs after finishing her breakfast. That's really the first time she's just done something like that on her own so it was great to see.

Today she did the same thing again - twice really. This morning we were both upstairs and left her downstairs with her breakfast. Sure enough, I heard the little clink-clink of her tag and there she was! Then tonight, Kat was upstairs while Maggie and I were in the family room. I got up to go to the bathroom, came out and Maggie was gone. She'd gone upstairs to find her mom all on her own. We're hoping this is the beginning of her starting to feel comfortable to walk around the house on her own. Up until now she's only ever moved from point to point when told.

Also now that our basement is finished we've been taking her down there. She's starting to learn "let's go to the basement". Right now she only gets it if we're going down there while we say it and she can follow us. If we point and say it while we stay here then she gets confused and goes upstairs. But before even if we were going that direction she'd go upstairs so at least she's starting to figure it out.

It's great in the basement because she doesn't have a bed there so there's no clearly defined area for her. She doesn't exactly get up and run all around, but she moves around in a larger area than her bed allows which is a good thing.

Also, she's become the master of the Kong. You can see it in a couple of these pictures. We got this thing around the same time we got Maggie. It sat virtually untouched for months. At the most she'd hit it once. If a treat came out she'd hit it again, but the first time she hit it without something coming out she'd give up on it.

Now she's a riot to watch with it. She's using her paws to grab it and shake it back and forth and will nose it all around the area in front of the couch in the basement.

She's gotten where she's very relaxed in the basement and we think she enjoys being down there with us. She sprawls out on her side which I'd say indicates she's pretty comfortable.

We bought Maggie a 6 month birthday gift at our favorite little pet store - Beachtails - in New Buffalo. It's walking distance to our place, the people - and their dogs - are super nice, and they have all of the things we buy for Maggie (ie. good quality, non-Chinese stuff). It's similar to Kriser's here, but we do all of our shopping up there now. Kat does her best - every weekend - to support the new local business :) And I don't need any excuse to avoid the B.S. sales tax around here - but I digress...

We were so excited to give her this gift, since she's done so well with the Kong. Here's a picture. Basically it's a hard rubber ball with a portion "scooped" out. We knew with some frozen peanut butter in there we'd have all sorts of entertainment watching Maggie chase the ball around.

As it turns out, Maggie is too smart for that. We put the ball in front of her, full of anticipation of the entertainment to come. She nosed the ball once, brought it back to her, and then used her front paws to hold it in place while she spent the next 10 minutes eating all of the frozen peanut butter. She didn't let the ball roll around at all. It didn't really turn out as expected, but at least she's smart and comfortable enough to do that. 4 months ago she would have just watched it roll away and then taken a nap.